January 1: Find Rest for Your Soul

Gregg’s Reflection

I remember when I started my meditation practice, what I sought was peace. I’d been baptized three years before, and knew I wanted a reprieve from the thoughts of “not good enough” that echoed in my mind and plagued my heart. As I began meditation I would breathe these words: My peace I give you (inbreath), Jesus, give me your peace (outbreath). These words helped to still my monkey mind.

Forty years later, my words are Be Still (from the Psalm “Be still and know I am God”). I come back to those words when thoughts intrude. It is helpful to set aside a place for meditation. Here is my place of abiding:

In all of my readings, Julian of Norwich has emerged as a favorite. The picture of God she paints is so loving, so compassionate, that she helped me finally believe “I am the beloved.” And, that’s a far cry from “not good enough.”

Today I find rest for my soul, and peace from my monkey mind by resting in Jesus.

Scripture

“Stand by the roads and look, and ask for the ancient paths, where the good way is; walk in it and find rest for your souls.”
— Jeremiah 6:16

Ancient Quote

“This is the reason why we do not feel complete ease in our hearts and souls: we look here for satisfaction in things which are so trivial, where there is no rest to be found, and do not know our God, who is almighty, all wise, all good; he is rest itself. God wishes to be known, and is pleased that we should rest in him; for all that is below does nothing to satisfy us; and this is why, until all that is made seems as nothing, no soul can be at rest.”
— Julian of Norwich, Essential Writings of Christian Mysticism, ed. McGinn, p. 242

Modern Quote

“Seek one thing alone: to purify your love of God more and more, to abandon yourself more and more perfectly to His will and to love Him more exclusively and more completely, but also more simply and more peacefully and with more total and uncompromising trust.”
— Thomas Merton, What is Contemplation, pp. 55–65

Journaling Prompts

• When was the last time you truly felt at rest — body, mind, and spirit?
• What practices or places help you rest in God’s presence?
• How might you make space today for the kind of rest that renews your soul?
• How often do you set aside time to spend in places or spaces that draw you away from the monkey mind to being present in the moment, enjoying rest?